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Sunday, January 01, 2012

D'Ann White - Have You Made Your New Year's Resolution Yet?

It's New Year's Day - a lot of people make some form of promise to themselves - and others - to change some behavior or habit that they feel unhappy with. And within a few weeks, a lot of those people will have ditched their resolution, within six months, half will have given up, and by the end of the year, only 10% will have kept their resolutions.

Bloomingdale-Riverview area residents prepare to lose weight, exercise more, stop smoking, save money and eat healthier as the New Year rolls around. Here are some places to help you meet your 2012 goals.

People make resolutions to improve themselves. Some stick to them; most don't.

According to Psychology Today, the majority of Americans will make some kind of resolution for the New Year. However, research has shown that, after six months, fewer than half the people making resolutions stick to them. After a year, the number declines to 10 percent.

According to USA.gov, the U.S. government's official web portal, the following are the top 10 resolutions Americans will make this year:

Drink less alcohol

Eat healthy food

Get a better education

Get a better job

Get fit

Lose weight

Manage stress

Quit smoking

Reduce, reuse and recycle

Save money

It's Brandon resident Jean Batronie's job to help people achieve several of those resolutions.

Owner of Brandon Hypnosis & Counseling, behavior counselor and hypnotist Batronie has been helping people achieve their goals for more than 40 years.

"I see a lot more clients come in during the beginning of the year because they've made resolutions to improve themselves," said Batronie. "People are all gung-ho at the beginning of the year, and it's my job to keep them motivated so they achieve their goals."

By far, the biggest problems Batronie sees are anxiety-related.

"Because of economic pressures right now, stress and anxiety are rampant. People are running scared right now and getting very stressed. This can exacerbate other problems. If you're a smoker, you'll smoke more if you're stressed. If you have a weight problem, you'll eat more when stressed," said Batronie. "People with economic concerns can also lose their positive attitudes and self esteem, which can lead to other problems."

Batronie said he not only works with clients on their core problems but also works to improve their attitudes so they have a better chance of a successful outcome.

Ah, a new year, a new chance to start fresh, another opportunity to make to New Year's resolutions, and, sadly, another year of likely failed New Year's resolutions. We want those resolutions to last, we really do, but we just can't make them stick. Well, we're not alone. Research has shown that, after six months, fewer than half the people who make New Year's resolutions have stuck with them, and, after a year, that number declines to around ten percent. Gosh, with those kinds of statistics, what's the point of even thinking about New Year's resolutions?

On the hopeful side, other research has reported that some simple strategies can help us stick with our New Year's resolutions, for example, setting specific goals, sharing our resolutions with others, and focusing on the benefits of achieving the resolution. But, even with these helpful hints, far more people fall off the New Year's resolution wagon than stay on.

I think the problem is that many of us don't understand what New Year's resolutions are about, namely, change, usually significant life change, for example, losing weight, getting out of debt, or quitting smoking.

We want to change and there's a $2.5 billion self-help industry out there to help. Why change? Because without change, we are assured of staying just the way we are and doing things just the way we always have (which, if we're making New Year's resolutions, is not the way we want to be). Yet anyone who has ever tried to change their thinking, emotions, or behavior knows how difficult it is.

The question that must be asked is: Why do we have such a hard time making significant changes in our lives?